History
India’s Independence At this time period, the British Empire was vast and powerful. India was one of the territories the British owned. By the early 1900s, however, their control over India weakened with he rise of nationalism. Indian National Congress The organization was founded in the year of 1885. The plan was plain and simple: gain rights and opporitunities for the people of India. By the 1930s, the INC had gained a little ground, winning some freedom for Indians. World War II As this was in World War II times, the British needed soldiers. However, angry that they were second-class citizens in their own country, and that they were fighting in a war for democracy while being given none, the INC refused to support the war effort. Civil Disobedience Peaceful marches, fasts, and boycotts proceeded to take place. While most protests were peaceful, the INC and Mohandas Gandhi were imprisoned regularly. This caused unrest, which led to riots. At this point, Britain was convinced that India was too costly to maintain and control. In 1947, Britain withdrew from India, giving them their independence. Mohandas Gandhi Mohandas Gandhi was the most important and influental leader of India's independence movement, leading marches, fasts, and boycotts. His leadership was entirely influenced by the practice of ahmisa, or non-violence. As a result, Gandhi convinced millions of Indians to protest British rule. Gandhi's non-violent practices have remained influental throughout history. Famous figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., James Lawson, Nelson Mandela, Dalai Lama, and John Lennon have been influenced by Gandhi. Vietnam's Independence In the 1900s, Vietnam was controlled by France. Ho Chi Minh sought to change that. Ho Chi Minh Born in French Indochina, Ho Chi Minh began to fight for Vietnamese independence after moving to France during World War I. He was inspired by the Fourteen Points, a statement issued by US President Woodrow Wilson. It dictated that all people should decide how they should be governed. When Ho Chi Minh sent a petition to world leaders meeting in Paris, demanding Vietnam's freedom; he was subsequently ignored. Because Vietnam was anti-colonialism, he wanted a communist government, as he felt that the peasants would play a major role in liberation. First Indochina War The conflict took place between France and Vietnam. The US and UK aided France, and China and the Soviet Union aided Vietnam. The French military, while having more firepower, were severely outmanned. The French were forced to fight in a jungle environment of which they were not familiar with; the Vietminh was on home court. The French also couldn't tell any difference between civilians and soldiers; they looked the same. The French were confused and unfamiliar with their opponents and their territory, and couldn't handle the Vietminh's fast-paced guerilla attacks. The problem became much worse when China and the Soviet Union provided more aid. The Vietminh was looking more and more like Vietnam's real government as they gained more and more political support. Result The Vietminh won the war, assimilating South Vietnam and becoming one territory. The French withdrew and Vietnam became independent. Vietnam remains a communist state. US’ Role In Rebuilding Japan In 1945, the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the war. The infrastructure of Japan was destroyed, leaving the economy and government of Japan in pieces. As the US destroyed it, they had to rebuild it. Occupation Japan was now put under the control of a US military occupation, led by General Douglas McArthur. McArthur's job was to make sure that, in the future, Japan would not be a threat to any other nation. While Japanese society had been heavily focused on war and military, the US wanted Japan to become a peaceful democratic nation. The Rebuild The US believed that if Japan was to become peaceful, political, social, and economic conditions had to be changed, along with the Japanese mindset. People tied to the militaristic Japan were stripped of power. Japan was forced to give up its overseas territories, and withdraw from Manchuria and Taiwan. The infrastructure and businesses of Japan had to be rebuilt almost from scratch. Thus, a land reform process was started, and labor unions were created in an attempt to do so. General McArthur, while appreciating the traditional role of the Emperor, wanted to establish a democracy. With this in mind, he made Japan a constitutional monarchy. McArthur Constitution General McArthur wrote a constitution for Japan that is still used today, now referred to as the McArthur Constitution (also known as the Postwar Constitution or Peace Constitution.) This constitution has a Bill of Rights and ensures basic freedoms. While the Emperor is still present in the government, his role is entirely ceremonial; he has no real power. The government now functions as a bicameral parliamentary democracy. This parliament is called the Diet. Anyone over 20 is allowed to vote for members of the Diet. The constitution stated that Japan could never again declare war on another country; Japan is allowed to fight only if it is attacked first. Japan cannot use its land, sea, or air forces to settle disputes with other nations. Japan Now Today, the Japanese government is one of the strongest in the world. Japan has a near-perfect literacy rate, is an innovator in capital goods, and is a driving force in the global economy. Timeline Communism in China Mao Zedong Mao Zedong was an influental figure in China's history, and the world's as a whole. He led the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, both of which shook the foundation of China. Great Leap Forward The Great Leap Forward was an attempt to modernize and improve China's economy. The movement was led by Mao Zedong, who wanted to prove to the Soviet Union that their method of economy was superior and more flexible. The Chinese were dead-set on becoming an economic world leader, while also changing from socialism to communism at the same time. There were essentially two forms to the Great Leap Forward; these were a massive steel production campaign and the movement of citizens into communes (essentially giant farms/factories.) Small "backyard" furnaces were created, and as there was a steel quota, everything was melted down: from cooking pots to doorknobs. Unfortunately, this steel was of too poor a quality to be of any use. China's rural areas were used to build communes. Here, everything was collective; if you worked, what you earned was distributed to the commune. People gave up possession of everything they owned to the commune officials. In spite of the fact that the quotas were ridiculous enough from the beginning, due to the propaganda and overzealousness of China at the time, the quotas were jacked up higher. Because of the steel rush, the labor forces that were supposed to harvest crops were depleted, resulting in food not being harvested. In early 1959, it was clear that the Great Leap Forward was out of control. It was rapidly changing from what the picture was painted as by China's government and commune officials. Some leaders were cautious or afraid of Chinese fervor, which was justified; radical officials still shouted the praises of the imaginary increase in production. Result The end result was disastrous. From 1959 to 1961 alone, 30 to 40 million people died from the famine that occured as a result of natural disasters and droughts that struck the land. The break in relations between China and the Soviet Union created the very real possibility of the Chinese economy collapsing. The economy's reconstruction was led by figures such as Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping, Chen Yun, and others. Mao Zedong accepted responsibility for the failure, and retreated to Shanghai. From here, he devised a plan to take back control of China with the... Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution was the name given to Mao Zedong's attempt to rise to power again in China. The Cultural Revolution took form in September 1965, with a speech by Lin Piao, asking students to return to the basics of the revolutionary movement. Criticism of liberals in the Chinese Communist Party and those influenced by Nikita Khruschev was encouraged. Mao believed that China's scientific progress had resulted in a privileged group; these people included engineers, scientists, factory managers, etc. Mao thought that the group was gaining power at his expense, and was concerned that they had no idea of an average Chinese person's lifestyle. The youth of China answered Mao's pleas and formed what they called Red Guards. They pushed for other youth to criticise people disliked or distrusted by Mao. Anyone with a seemingly uppity or superior attitude was an enemy. Mao intentionally tried to make a cult for himself in an attempt to clean the CCP of people who had different beliefs than him. He used several points for persuasion; the most convincing of which that he wanted to create a classless China, where everyone worked together for the country's good. The Red Guards, however, ended up doing more harm than good. They caused the shut-down of schools, and the economy to suffer. There became more splits and tensions between Red Guards, as they would argue and fight, believing they knew what was best for China. This resulted in anger, resulting in several attacks on foreigners and embassies. The British Embassy was burnt to the ground. Chaos continued until Zhou Enlai sounded his plea for a normal China. In the CCP, he encouraged all of the party members to take in and improve off of any criticisms. He quickly realized that the Cultural Revolution would soon be beyond control. Result What is considered the end of the Cultural Revolution took place in 1968, when Liu Shao-chi was removed from office. As his rival in the party was gone, he saw no need to continue the movement any longer. Tiananmen Square Massacre The Tiananmen Square Massacre, also known as the June Fourth Incident or 6/4, was a China-led invasion on student marchers in Tiananmen Square. The protests took place due to the death of Hu Yaobang, a former CCP General Secretary and a liberal reformist. He was forced out of office after losing a power struggle with other CCP members on political and social reforms. At its highest, the amount of people in the Square was in the ballpark of 1 million. The protestors were asking for a corruption-free CCP, social and political reforms, and freedom of speech and the the press. Result The Chinese government saw these as riots, and 300,000 troops in the People's Liberation Army were sent in. The resulting massacre was unprecedented. From June 3-4, The PLA shot indiscriminately at people in the crowd. The resulting death toll estimate ranges from a few hundred to a few thousand. China's foreign relations fell through almost entirely. The US and its allies immediately imposed economic and diplomatic sanctions on China. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank also stopped lending to China. These decisions have lasted; China and the West have significaltly lessened communication, and have lost revenue from lack of tourism and foreign investments. Containment of Communism In the 1960s, the US was very anti-communism. The reasoning was a result of what was called the domino theory: "Finally, you have broader considerations that might follow what you would call the "falling domino" principle. You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly. So you could have a beginning of a disintegration that would have the most profound influences." - Dwight D. Eisenhower The US was very watchful of the Soviet Union and China, as the US feared that they cound influence other countries around them, such as Vietnam and Korea. When communism became more prevalent, the US was ready to act, and did; in Korea and Vietnam.